| What should I do first?
You have to
be a member of a Motorcycle Club that is affiliated to the Auto Cycle Union, the
ACU for short. The ACU is the governing body of motorcycle road racing in England
and Wales, including the Channel Isles and the Isle of Man. The cost of Club Membership
varies but is normally a few pounds each year. You then have to decide which Club(s)
you wish to join. You may have to obtain information from several Clubs to help
you decide. Do I need a licence of any kind?
Yes.
You will need a Road Race Licence from the ACU to race your motorcycle at authorised
race meetings. A Licence will cost you £43.00 and will be valid from 1st
January until 31st December each year. Provided you are reasonably fit there is
no need for a medical, but an eyesight examination will be required every third
year. There is a requirement to attend a Pre - Licence Qualification Course
(ACU-T) before a new Road Race Licence can be issued. Details of this course will
be sent with your ACU Licence Application Form. The ACU-T course is also held
from time to time at Darley Moor details are on the Darley Moor website. You must
successfully attend and pass this course before you can apply for your Road Race
Licence. The Certificate, which is valid for 12 months, from your ACU-T Course
must be attached to your Licence Application Form. (For security reasons you are
strongly advised to take and keep a copy of your Certificate) You must also
prove that you can ride a motorcycle. This can be done in several ways - see the
ACU Licence Application Form for full details. At certain times of the year this
can be done at Darley Moor again see the website for details. Once you have
obtained your Licence application form, complete the form, had your eyesight tested
and successfully completed the ACU-T Course, you should send your Licence Application
Form to the Club Secretary together with your Membership Form to join that club.
If you put a stamped addressed envelope to the ACU with your Licence application
form (remember the cheque if required), the Secretary will normally countersign
your Licence application and forward to the ACU. What bike can I race?
There are restrictions as to size and type of motorcycle you may race if you are
a newcomer to road racing.
At 12 years of age you may
ride a Production based machine up to 125cc two stroke or 250cc four stroke.
At 15 years of age you may ride a GP type machine up to 125cc two
stroke or 250cc four stroke.
AT 16 years of age you
may ride a Production based machine up to 250cc two stroke, or a 400cc four stroke
four cylinder or 650cc four stroke twin cylinder.
At 18 years
of age without a DVLA Class A Road Licence you can ride a Production based
machine up to 600cc four stroke four cylinder, 675cc four stroke three cylinder
or a 750cc four stroke twin cylinder or a GP machine up to 250cc two stroke.
There are no restrictions on the type of machine you can ride if you are over
18years old and hols a DVLA Class A Road Licence.
Please see the ACU
Licence Application Form (ACU Web Site) for full
details of these restrictions.
As a newcomer to Road Racing you are required
to wear an orange vest over your leathers, this can be obtained from the ACU at
the same time as you apply for your Licence. The cost of the orange vest is £7.00
(non-refundable) What next?
When you took your ACU-T course you
would have been given an ACU Handbook that will help you understand the rules
and regulations governing Road Racing. Also in this book are the technical regulations
concerning the safety requirements of your machine and clothing (including your
helmet etc.). You are advised to pay particular attention to these requirements
because failure to observe them may result in your not being eligible for a race
meeting. And to enter a race?
The Club(s) that you have joined
will normally send you Regulations and Entry Forms for the meetings they are holding.
These regulations are in addition to those in the ACU handbook and not instead
of them. | 
MOTORCYCLE RACING RESULTS
